Ayrshire Notes template 3 Sep 03

Transcription

No. 28
Autumn 2004
A milestone in Crosshill
ISSN 1474–3531
£2.00
Contributions for the Spring 2005 issue of Ayrshire Notes, including information
about the activities of Member Societies, should be sent before the end of January to
Rob Close, 1 Craigbrae Cottages, Drongan, Ayr KA6 7EN, tel. 01292 590273.
Local Societies may obtain additional copies of Ayrshire Notes for their members at
cost price by prior arrangement with David McClure, 7 Park Circus, Ayr KA7 2DJ,
tel. 01292 262248.
AYRSHIRE NOTES
is published in Ayr by
AYRSHIRE ARCHAEOLOGICAL & NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY
in association with
AYRSHIRE FEDERATION OF HISTORICAL SOCIETIES
AYRSHIRE NOTES 28, 2004, ISSN 1474–3531
© 2004. The copyright of the articles belongs to the individual authors.
Further information about the AANHS (Ayrshire Archaeological & Natural History Society)
and its publications will be found on the society’s website: www.aanhs.org.uk
AANHS President
Stanley Sarsfield
AANHS Secretary
Mrs Sheena Andrew, 17 Bellrock Avenue, Prestwick KA9 1SQ.
Tel. 01292 479077
AFHS Chairman
Stuart Wilson
AFHS Secretary
Pamela McIntyre, 5 Eglinton Terrace, Ayr KA7 1JJ.
Tel. 01292 280080
Cover illustration
This is one of the surviving milestones on the turnpike road from Maybole, through
Crosshill and Dailly, to Girvan. The road was turnpiked under the 1774 Ayr Roads Act.
The hidden mileage to Newtonstewart is 31, by the Balloch road, which departs from the
other here. It was turnpiked under the same act. See ‘Historic Milestones’, page 27.
Contents
Ayrshire Stallion Leaders
4
Deerness Covenanter Memorial
Appendix: Ayrshire Victims of the Crown Shipwreck, 1679
Drowned while hunting with his otter-hounds
‘Melancholy Accident’
10
14
16
17
Scotland’s Churches Scheme
18
Norris McWhirter
21
Ayrshire Federation of Historical Societies
22
New Secretary
22
Troon Conference 2004
22
Swap Shop, 2004
23
Diary of Meetings September 2004 to May 2005
23
Historic Milestones
27
AANHS Publications
28
Ayrshire Notes 28, Autumn 2004
3
Ayrshire Stallion Leaders
When farming in Scotland experienced radical changes after the Second World War,
one of the many rural scenes to disappear was the sight of a solitary man, walking the
country roads from April to late autumn, accompanied by a large, impressive horse. This
would be a Clydesdale, a noble animal well-known for its endurance and dignity. It might
be up to 17 hands high and in the walking season it caught the onlooker’s eye with its
flowing mane, docked tail, white feathered feet and, usually, a white blaze on its face. The
man who accompanied the horse would be a stallion leader, chosen from the more skilful
grooms of a pedigree Clydesdale stud. He toured an assigned district with the stallion to
serve the mares in far-flung farms, and so to maintain the breed, which would carry out all
the heavy draught work in the course of the farming year. Though dressed like most of the
farm workers of the time, he was as impressive as his horse in his self-assurance, purposeful
air and resolute step.
After the war, when the tractor and lorry replaced the heavy horse, many thousand
draught horses were slaughtered and left the scene as if overnight. In 1947, one hundred
thousand were put down and a similar number the following year. 1 The figure eventually
ran in to millions as the transfer to motor transport increased. The Clydesdale had been a
daily presence on the roads and a wonder to every watchful child. They had graced the
landscape for generations. Farmers, farm workers, delivery men and roundsmen had
sustained with them an affair of mutual devotion throughout their working lives.
I had interviewed a number of surviving grooms in Ayrshire in the 1980s. Three of
them – Ben Boyce, Bob McClymont and John Fleming, all then living in retirement – were
happy to draw upon memories of lives of achievement and much pleasure.
Ben Boyce was employed by J & R Smith, of Nether Newton, Newmilns, as a
stallion leader from 1936 until 1946. He travelled two seasons in County Durham, to
Chester-le-Street and Seaham Harbour, and “liked it fine.” In 1944 he remembered 1,780
horses going through Lanark market in four days. The grooms attending took their
refreshments in “The Silver Bell”, where stories and experiences were shared. In the train to
the great Scotstoun Show, Ben Boyce recalled a minister coming into the compartment and
saying, “I suppose you gentlemen are in the horse business; you’ll not be able always to tell
the truth.” One of them called Davie Riddell replied, “It widnae be sae bad if lees could dae
it.” The care of stallions and their presentation to the mares was a highly skilled job, not
always apparent to ministers and other laymen.
Service charges varied between breeders. When Ben travelled to Mull in 1940 he
journeyed light with a coat and oilskins, and a notebook. Food and laundry would normally
be supplied at the farms. Fees were between £2 and £3, with better horses perhaps up to £5.
When asked about grooms with a horse companion, he recalled only one, an old fellow in
County Durham with his own old stallion called Jolly Boy. He travelled with a pony and
Ben Boyce found it strange watching them approach, the groom on his pony with the
stallion alongside. He put it down to him being too old to walk the great distances.
4
Walking Season, 1939. Cornfallow was offered to the Vale of Garnock Horse Breeding
Society from George Alston’s stud at Loudounhill.
Bob McClymont was a stallion leader with the breeder George Alston of
Loudounhill, from 1936 until his last walking season in the Crieff district in 1949. A
groom’s fee was 2s 6d (12½p), rising to 5s (25p) after the Second World War. Sometimes
an unofficial fee could be earned on the quiet. An old groom told him when he strated,
“Ye’re nae dampt use if ye cannae get a new suit o claes and a pair o buits oot o it.” Mr
McClymont believed his job was like a disease: you became attached to the horses and foals
and knew them all their lives. Grooms had a pride in their work; when you first came out
leading a stallion “ye stuck your kist oot. Ye were a man.”
Dressing and grooming was part of the stallion leader’s duties. Raffia plaits were
attached to the horse’s mane until after the shows and inspection by the farmers. Purely
decorative, they might help to give the right signals to a group who could be a delegation
from an agricultural association, looking for a horse for the travelling season. Bob
McClymont enjoyed the life, and in the walking season he was always welcome in the
Ayrshire dairy farms. The folk were interested in horses and farm workers are in the kitchen
with the family. In the north-east of Scotland it was rougher in the bothy life. Not everyone
5
was keen, though, on horsey talk. Some grooms found employment in winter at the
threshing mill, working from McQuaters depot in Maybole. An old frequenter of the Kings
Arms, where the McQuater men met, was spied one night in another pub. When challenged,
he said he was fed up with the chat in his usual howff: “If ye don’t gae hame wi yer een fu o
cauff [chaff] ye gae hame in foal.”
Season 1950, presenting Loudoun Security to the Kirriemuir District Agricultural
Society showing its pedigree, terms and stations on the itinerary. Latterly stallions
travelled by horse box to agreed collection points.
The scale of the work can be judged when between Turnberry and Girvan a stallion
would serve 85 mares. This was only one estimate given by the breeder George Alston of
Loudounhill. Other stallions might be working in the same area. With the horses you had to
be in control, but without being cruel. One groom, for example, spoiled a very good horse
named Cornfallow by overworking it. Bob McClymont got it back after a season and had
no end of bother with it, as it had established dominion over the groom. Horses sense your
feelings if you are scared or tentative, he said. An unlikely candidate for stallion leader was
a wee fellow called ‘The Gas’, a terrible blether, who came through from West Lothian to
lead a stallion there. On seeing the diminutive figure with the huge stallion disappearing up
the road to Darvel station, George Alston turned to Bob, and said, “What dae ye think will
happen?” The Gas was full of confidence, but never came back for a repeat season. The
grooms also had their sad times. One leader went off to Galloway and his stallion died.
Another was sent, and it died too. Still another was dispatched, but the groom came home
with a halter. There was grass sickness in Galloway at that time.
6
Catalogue of the final sale of the Clydesdale stud of the Kilpatricks of Craigie Mains.
Craigie Merryman went to Canada for 450 guinease. The best in the sale, Craigie
Gallant Hero, sold at 2600 guineas.
The third informant of the great days of the Clydesdales was John Fleming, head
groom at the renowned stud of James Kilpatrick of Craigie Mains. Kilpatrick had won the
premier stallion prize, the Cawdor Cup, three times at the annual show at Scotstoun. The
big event of the year was the stallion contest on the first Wednesday and Thursday in March.
The trains went right into the showground. The grooms left Craigie on Tuesday to walk to
7
Kilmarnock station with the horses. At Craigie Mains there were thirty to forty stallions
with four or five mares for breeding and about three work-horses.
Craigie True Form owned by James Kilpatrick of Craigie Mains won the Cawdor Cup
for the best male at the stallion show in 1948.
Fleming’s own concern over the work was apparent. The stallions in earlier days
were docked. It made them tidier and allowed better action; but the docking was very cruel
and he said he never liked it. A big knife was used and the rump cauterised with a hot iron
to stop the bleeding. Later, a vet’s certificate was obligatory until it was finally legally
condemned. Afterwards only the hair was cut.
Craigie Mains had horses travelling all over Scotland, as far afield as Orkney, as
well as into England. Two travelling stallions went to Durham, and it was possible to
collect a pound fee on the side. The official fee in the late 1920s and the 1930s was an
average of £2 to £3, and the same again if it was in foal. The best horse at home was
between £5 and £10. Mares also travelled to Craigie Mains, paying a standard fee of £15
and another £15 if in foal. Sometimes a mare was sold away and farmers cheated, claiming
they were not in foal.
The stallions had a working life of up to twenty years. The grooms travelled light
with a razor in their pockets, and few other personal items. The stallion had a belt and the
groom strapped his coat on top for bad weather, and possibly his leggings also. On each
side would hang the horses’ boots. These boots, made of leather, were in the shape of a
foot, and with a buckle and strap. The boots were worn when the stallions were with the
8
mares to avoid injuries. Horses travelled out from farm to farm in different areas. Those for
Ayrshire, three in all, left Craigie Mains on Monday morning. One was the Kilmarnock
horse; it would reach Barassie on Monday night, Springside on Tuesday night, Moscow on
Wednesday, Carnell on Thursday and outside Ayr on Friday. It came home on Saturday or
Sunday.
John Fleming’s favourite stallion was Craigie Commodore. He served twelve mares
one Monday and when John returned for foal money he had to collect for fourteen foals. He
judged that a good stallion should have a bright eye, nice head, long neck, short back, big
broad quarters, hough well up in the leg, short above, a deep belly and heart, and long silky
hair. The fore legs should be well in below with big solid feet to carry them. Stallions were
well-couthered during the season. They might get a bottle of stout with two eggs mixed in it
at night, over and above their usual meals: quite often eggs would go a-missing on the
farms.
It was a good life, better paid than other farm workmen, but the pitfall for the
grooms on the road was their fondness of drink. They pulled up at pubs, and they drank at
the shows. This brought about rivalry among them, and arguments began over stallions.
One old Aberdonian that John Fleming knew who travelled in South Ayrshire used to get fu’
every Saturday on his way back. He would be found lying at the side of the road with his
horse grazing nearby. His boss put him in the car, but John had to bring the horse home.
The old fellow, refuting the myth about Aberdonians, always gave him a sixpence the next
day.
John Fleming’s father was head groom at Craigie before him. When John stared at
eighteen there were five grooms. When the stud at Craigie Mains closed in 1961 he was the
only groom remaining. The dispersal sale after the death of Mr Allan Kilpatrick was held at
Ayr Auction Mart in October. Six horses were sold. Craigie Gallant Hero went for 2,600
guineas; another, Craigie Merrymen, followed what was then the trend and was earmarked
for Canada. Already the best of the breed were being bought for studs in that country,
though also in the USA, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, and even Russia; one has
sold latterly to Japan for £20,000. By the 1980s the best stock had been acquired by
breeders abroad, and an American-bred colt, Zeus, became the supreme male champion,
winning the Cawdor Cup at Scotstoun. It was at this period that controversy developed
among members of the Clydesdale Horse Society. It was suggested that selective
introduction of the English Shire Horse should be used to improve the home-bred
Clydesdale. Up until then every horse had been bred “according to the [stud] book”, rather
than the blood-typing being advocated to ensure a clean pedigree.
The great days were long gone since James Kilpatrick of Craigie Mains and William
Dunlop of Dunure Mains, world class breeders, had their celebrated litigation over the
ownership of the stallion Baron of Buchlyvie. The case went to the Court of Session, and
finally to the House of Lords, which found in favour of Kilpatrick. The horse was sold at
Ayr Mart, in 1911, for £6,500, which is possibly half a million pounds in today’s money.
When John Fleming left Craigie Mains he believed the day of the Clydesdale stud
was over. He found employment as a grain-store foreman, with steady hours and he was at
home every weekend. His wife was happier with the new regime, but he himself thought
9
that it could not be compared with his work with the horses and he was to have no more
pleasure, as he said, in the birth of the wee foals
Jim Mair
1
See the chapter, “The massacre of 1947” in Keith Chivers, The Shire Horse,
1976.
Deerness Covenanter Memorial
There is on the East Mainland of Orkney a memorial to the approximately 210
Covenanters who were drowned there in December 1679. Of this memorial I knew two
things: firstly, that of the victims, most of whom had been captured at the Battle of Bothwell
Bridge, some must have been from Ayrshire; and secondly that the memorial had been built
in 1888 “at the instigation of a South American visitor to Orkney.” 1 A visit to Orkney in
June this year gave me the opportunity not only to visit the memorial, but also to see
whether I could learn some more. I was particularly interested in the fact that none of the
standard references, such as Burgher, gave an architect, while the “South American visitor”
seemed too implausible to be true.
Following their defeat at Bothwell Bridge on 22nd June 1679, nearly 1200
Covenanters had been taken prisoner by the Crown armies of Charles II. Some were
executed, and many were subsequently released under an Act of Indemnity proclamation of
14th August that year. However, an earlier order in the Privy Council, made on 4th July,
had ordained that all “Ministers, Heritors and Ringleaders” were to be prosecuted and
banished to slavery in the American plantations. William Paterson, a merchant in
Edinburgh, contracted to undertake the transportation, and it was he who chartered the
Crown of London, captain Thomas Teddico, to take the prisoners across the Atlantic. The
Crown sailed from Leith on 27th November, and put in at Deersound, Orkney, on 10th
December; she sailed again that evening and was almost immediately wrecked at
Scarvataing, about a mile west of the Mull Head of Deerness. 2 Thomas Brown, a writer in
Kirkwall, recorded the event in his diary: “Dec 10th being Wednesday at 9 in the evening or
thrabout the vessel or ship called the Crown wherein was 250 of the wigs or thereby taken at
Bothwell Brigge to have been sent to Virginia parroshed at or near by the Moull Head of
Deerness. 3 ” The names of the known Ayrshire victims are included below as an appendix.
“It had often been proposed that some fitting memorial should be erected over the
graves of those Covenanters, whose sworn adherence to the Protestant faith had cost them
their lives, but it was only on 22nd December 1886 that any definite steps were taken.” 4 On
that date a public meeting, chaired by Samuel Reid, 5 Provost of Kirkwall, was held in the
Old Town Hall, Kirkwall, and it was agreed that a subscription appeal should be made.
Reporting a subsequent meeting of the Committee, in March 1887, at which the wording of
the appeal was approved, it was noted that, “as our readers will recollect, it is now a
10
considerable time since this matter was first advocated to writers in these columns, in
connection with which Dr Gunning of Edinburgh and Rio Janeiro promised a subscription of
at least £50.” 6 It was undoubtedly this promise of £50 which had spurred the people of
Orkney into action, and in “Dr Gunning” we have the “South American visitor”.
The Deerness Memorial.
Robert Halliday Gunning, (1818-1900) then, is the person who did most to bring
about the erection of the Deerness Memorial. Without his promise of £50 it is unlikely that
the project would ever have been begun, especially when it is realised that the total sum
subscribed was less than £100. In a recent article, Thomas W Baillie traces Gunning’s life
and career. 7
Gunning was born in Ruthwell, and grew up in Kirkbean, New Abbey and
Dumfries. He qualified as a surgeon at Edinburgh in 1839, and in 1849 he left for Brazil,
where he remained in practice for 33 years, returning in 1882. He described his practice in
Rio as “lucrative”, while from 1872 to 1878 he worked at Palmeiras in the gold-rich northeast highlands of Brazil. His wealth enabled him to support causes he held dear, and bodies
to benefit from his largesse include Edinburgh University, the Royal Society of Edinburgh,
the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh, the Royal College of Physicians in Edinburgh
11
and the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. Many of the awards and lectureships that he
endowed, often known as Victoria Jubilee Prizes, are still presented. He married twice,
though there was no issue from either marriage, and he died in London in March 1900.
Gunning was a religious person, and was a close associate of Thomas Chalmers
(1780-1847), one of the major players in the 1843 Disruption. While we do not know when
Gunning visited Orkney, nor why he was particularly moved to support this project, we can
see that an upbringing in south-west Scotland, and an association with Chalmers, would
have made Gunning a natural enthusiast for the Covenanters, and for honouring their
memory. Gunning’s involvement appears to have been, in part, through the Reverend
William A Kyd, “now in Tasmania, but who had been for some time doing work in Orkney
in connection with the United Presbyterian Church. It was he who first of all corresponded
with Dr Gunning, and obtained from him the handsome donation of £50.” 8
The inscribed plaque on the Deerness Memorial.
12
In July 1888 it was reported to a meeting of the Memorial Committee that the
monument was then being built, and would be completed by early August. It was described
as a 40 foot high obelisk, in Orkney stone, 9 surmounted by a crown, and with a granite slab
carrying the inscription. Subscriptions at that date were £97. There is no mention of either
an architect, or of the contractors for the building. 10
Report in The Dundee Advertiser, Friday, August 17, 1888.
The inauguration took place on Wednesday 22nd August 1888. “There was a large
and enthusiastic gathering of people from the surrounding districts, and many came great
distances. Five or six brakes carried a number of leading citizens from Kirkwall. The day
… was a characteristic Covenanters’ day. In the morning and forenoon a dense fog hung
over the islands, shrouding every object in that mist which so often saved the lives of the
Covenanters … but long before the monument was reached the veil had been lifted from the
earth, and the ceremony of inauguration took place under a bright sun and a refreshing
breeze.” 11 “By one o’clock over 500 people had assembled round the monument.” 12
13
According to one report, “if the weather is favourable the steamer Lizzie Burroughs is to
make a special trip from Kirkwall to Deerness.” 13
At the inauguration, a history of the movement for the erection of the monument, a
list of subscribers, a copy of the subscription appeal, local, Edinburgh and Aberdeen papers,
and a Bible, as well as a set of jubilee coins were placed in a bottle. The bottle was placed
in a recess in the south-west side of the monument, and over this recess was placed the
granite slab with this inscription:
For Christ, His Crown and Covenant. Erected by public subscription to the memory
of 200 Covenanters who were taken prisoners at Bothwell Bridge and sentenced to
transportation for life, but who perished by shipwreck near this spot, 10th Dec. 1679.
Unfortunately, the names of the designer and contractors remain unknown.
Although £100 seems a paltry sum, even by the standards of 1888, the Committee had
sufficient money left over to erect a further monument. This is in Kirkwall, and takes the
form of a red and grey Aberdeenshire granite drinking fountain almost immediately in front
of St Magnus Cathedral. Put up in 1890, it was not universally loved: “an absurdity in
polished granite, utterly out of keeping with its surroundings.” 14 The design is by James
Hutcheon of Aberdeen, 15 but he is unlikely to have been the designer of the Deerness
Memorial. This fountain is on the site of the Old Town Hall, where the first meetings of the
Committee had been held.
Appendix: Ayrshire Victims of the Crown Shipwreck, 1679 16
Auchinleck
Barr
Colmonell
Dalmellington
Dalry
Dreghorn
Fenwick
Andrew Richmond
Alexander Burden
John McClellan, Thomas McClurg, John McCornock
Walter Humper senior, 17 Hugh Simpson
David McCubbin, William McCulloch
James Bouston
David Bitchet, William Bitchet, Andrew Buckle, David Currie, James Gray,
Robert Tod, John White, John Wylie
Galston
George Campbell, James Young
Girvan
William Caldwell
Kilmarnock
James Anderson, Robert Anderson, William Brown, John Cuthbertson,
Thomas Finlay 18
Kirkmichael John Brice, Robert Douglas, James McConnell, John McTire,
RobertRamsay
Kirkoswald
Thomas Germont, John White
Loudoun
Thomas Wylie
Mauchline
William Drips, William Reid
Maybole
Mungo Eccles, Thomas Horn, Robert McGarron, John McHarrie, John
McWhirter, William Rodger
Muirkirk
John Campbell, Alexander Paterson
Ochiltree
Andrew Welch
Old Cumnock John Gemil, James Mirrie
14
Stewarton
Straiton
Andrew Wylie, Robert Wylie, Thomas Wylie
George Hutcheson, Alexander Lamb, James McMurrie
Rob Close
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
Leslie Burgher, Orkney: An Illustrated Architectural Guide, Edinburgh, 1991, p.32
This paragraph owes much to the work of Robert B Miller, Richmond, VA, who has
researched the history of the Crown, and presented a copy of his work to the Orkney
Library and Archive.
Quoted in Harald L Mooney, ‘The Wreck of the Crown and the Covenanters in Orkney’,
in Orkney Miscellany, vol 2, 1954, p.3.
Dundee Advertiser, 17th August 1888.
Samuel Reid (1825-1912), a merchant and shipowner, was Provost of Kirkwall from
1876 until 1887. At the same time as he was chairing the Deerness Memorial
Committee, he was also building for himself a house, Braebuster, on Deerness. The
architect of this house was Thomas Smith Peace (1845-1934), Kirkwall.
Orkney Herald, 2nd March 1887, 4c. The earlier correspondence in the paper has not
been traced.
Thomas W Baillie, ‘Robert Halliday Gunning and the Victoria Jubilee Prizes’, in
Scottish Medical Journal, 48(2), 2003, pp 54-57. This and the next paragraphs are
based on Baillie’s work. See also www.smj.org.uk/0403/gunning.htm
The Orcadian, August 25th1888, 5b.
“blue stone taken from the beach below”: The Orcadian, 25th August 1888, 5a.
Orkney Herald, 18th July 1888, 5a.
Orkney Herald, 29th August 1888, 7a.
The Orcadian, 25th August 1888, 5a.
Dundee Advertiser, 17th August 1888. It is not known if this sailing took place.
Buchan H Hossack, Kirkwall in the Orkneys, Kirkwall, 1900, p.284.
John Gifford, The Buildings of Scotland: Highlands and Islands, London, 1992,
p.333.
My thanks are due to Dane Love for providing this list, which appears in his Scottish
Covenanter Stories.
Walter Humper junior survived, as did Hugh Cameron and Quintin McAdam, both
also from Dalmellington. Other Ayrshiremen to survive the wreck were George
Dunbar (Craigie), Andrew Thomson (Dundonald), Robert Wallace (Fenwick) and
Patrick Watt (Kilmarnock). Andrew Thomson was among the 9 survivors who are
believed to have escaped to Ulster: see J Thomson, A Cloud of Witnesses, 1714, quoted
by Robert Miller (cf fn 2)
These five are also commemorated by a memorial stone at Kilmarnock Laigh Kirk.
First erected in 1823, the stone was repaired in 1846. A new stone was put up c.1996.
Information from Stuart Wilson.
15
Drowned while hunting with his otter-hounds
I am indebted to Drew Moyes for spotting a memorial stone in the churchyard in
Elsdon, Northumberland, with an Ayrshire connection. It bears the following inscription:
‘Erected by a few friends to the memory of John Gallon, who was drowned while
hunting his hounds in the River Lugar, Ayrshire, July 16th 1873, aged 59 years.’
It is a memorial stone rather than a headstone, since John Gallon’s remains were
presumably interred in Ayrshire.
A stretch of the Water of Lugar in the vicinity of Slatehole Bridge.
From the First Ordnance Survey, 1860.
John Gallon was master of the otter hunt which met at 7.30 that morning at
Barskimming House, which stood above the River Ayr. Upstream, a little way above
Barskimming Old Bridge, the Ayr is joined by the Water of Lugar. The otter hounds headed
up the Lugar towards Ochiltree. From the account of Gallon’s death in the Ayr Advertiser
(see below) it is apparent that he met with his misfortune downstream of Slatehole Bridge,
where the river is constrained in a narrow defile between high banks of sandstone rock
crowned with trees. The rest of the party gathered at the bridge. When he failed to make an
appearance and they did not hear the cry of his horn, they began to search for him. Slatehole
Bridge spanned the Lugar almost due north of Slatehole Farm. Tracks to it on either bank of
the Lugar can be seen on the O.S. One Inch Series map, Sheet 67, published in 1964, though
with no trace of a bridge. The O.S. Landranger 1:50,000 map, sheet 70, published in 1988,
shows a track on the right bank only.
16
A recent inspection of the site revealed the remains of the bridge on the left bank.
The substantial buttress stands above the present level of the water, and above it the
sandstone blocks of the sides of the bridge extend up to the parapets and road surface. It
was a narrow bridge, suitable for pedestrians and possibly horses, but not for carts and
carriages.
The remains of Slatehole Bridge on Lugar Water
‘Melancholy Accident’
From the Ayr Advertiser, Thursday July 17th, 1873, 4e.
‘Yesterday morning the pack of hounds belonging to J. Gallon, Esq., near
Newcastle, met at Barskimming House at 7.30. A considerable number of lovers of the
sport mustered, and a start was made under the guidance of the well-known and highly
appreciated master, Mr John Gallon. The hounds at once gave tongue, and went at a rattling
pace up the Lugar for about a mile above Barskimming House, where a precipitous rock on
either side of the stream, with an extremely narrow border below on which to pass, renders
following the bed of the river almost impossible. Here Mr Gallon must have endeavoured to
pass, but the other followers (none of whom were at the time in sight of him) left the bed of
the stream lower down, and through plantations took the nearest course to Slatehole Bridge,
to await his arrival with the hounds. His non-appearance, however, at the expected moment
created no great surprise, as it was thought he had either got before his friends or taken a
17
nearer way to a bend further up the river (the hounds being in full cry), but on their going
about a mile further on, they fancied he could not have gone so far without their hearing his
horn, or some other symptom, and resolved to turn back in search of him. On arriving at
Slatehole Bridge they learned that no trace of him had been see, and after sending scouts up
and down the river unsuccessfully, their most anxious fears were aroused. A raft made of a
cart and ladders was constructed, and a grappling iron procured from a smithy near at hand,
and after about an hour’s dragging the body was found about 150 yards below the bridge.
The unfortunate gentleman had thus lost his life while hunting and cheering on his hounds at
the sport he so dearly loved. We understand that he could not swim. Mr Gallon as for the
last 40 years been well-known and justly esteemed by all lovers of otter hunting as a
thorough-going and most energetic amateur master and huntsman, and his loss will be
sincerely regretted by all sportsmen on both sides of the Tweed. He was in his 61st year,
and leaves a widow to lament his untimely fate.’
David McClure
Scotland’s Churches Scheme
Scotland’s churches constitute a significant part of the nation’s ecclesiastical
heritage. The wonderful diversity of the buildings and the peacefulness of their sanctuaries
are both an attraction and a source of spiritual uplift for the visitor – whether the purpose is
18
to join in worship, access a place of private player or enjoy the artistic, architectural and
historical heritage of the building.
To encourage “open doors” Scotland is fortunate to have a unique Trust which
advises and assists churches in this ministry of welcome.
Scotland’s Churches Scheme is an ecumenical charitable trust, providing an
opportunity to access the nation’s ecclesiastical heritage and at the same time giving the
individual church a greater profile with “open doors” to its own community. In assists
churches in membership to:
work together with others to make the Church the focus of the community;
open their doors with a welcoming presence;
tell the story of the building (however old or new), its purpose and heritage (artistic,
architectural and historical);
provide information and care for visitors, young and old.
The Scheme has grown rapidly since its inception in 1994 and there are now over
900 Churches in membership, operating an “open doors” policy. These churches are spread
across Scotland - and across all the denominations. They contain a significant part of the
nation’s heritage (over 500 are listed buildings, a quarter being Category A)
In Ayrshire, there are over one hundred churches in membership, giving details of
their architectural and artistic features; service and opening times; and special events. The
Scheme’s local Representative in the county is Joan Fish (tel: 01292 272654) of St
Andrew’s Parish (Ferguson Memorial), Irvine. Joan would be delighted to advise any
churches interested in joining or receiving the Scheme’s publications.
While we are interested in opening this wonderful heritage to visitors and to the
parish community we are also keen to provide the opportunity for local access for spiritual
quiet, at times other than services. We are not, therefore, solely interested in buildings with
19
artistic, historical or architectural features but in all churches, old and new, urban and rural –
they are all an integral part of their communities and many have a fascinating story to tell.
The Trust publishes a comprehensive guidebook, Churches to Visit in Scotland, well
received by local communities and visitors. Area maps with references and clear directions
enable the visitor to access the church, however isolated. There are three Ayrshire sections
– East, North and South, with many of the churches illustrated with John Hume’s line
drawings (three of which are reproduced here). 1 The current edition features Our Lady and
St Meddans, Troon, on the front cover, and the first new millennium church, Mansefield
Trinity, Kilwinning, on the back cover.
The book is available at price £8.99, plus post and packaging, from Scotland’s
Churches Scheme, Dunedin, Holehouse Road, Eaglesham, Glasgow G76 0JF. Churches can
obtain a good discounted rate on 6 or more copies, with free delivery. [Phone 01355
302416, fax 01355 303181, or e-mail [email protected] for details]
The Scheme is developing rapidly and advises churches with, for example, “knowhow” booklets on researching your history, presenting your story, visitor welcome and
security. We would be delighted to see more Ayrshire churches joining us. If you would
like more information, please contact us at the Eaglesham address.
Brian Fraser
1
20
Of course John R. Hume is also the author and illustrator of the latest publication of
the AANHS, Vernacular Building in Ayrshire.
Norris McWhirter
The recent death of Norris Dewar McWhirter, one of the founders of the Guinness
Book of Records, will have been noticed by readers of Ayrshire Notes. His twin brother,
Ross, was killed in 1975.
On reading the obituaries for Norris McWhirter, it struck me that this is an Ayrshire
surname, and that there could be a connection with Ayrshire, and so it proved. What
follows is based largely on standard references, such as Who Was Who, and the useful
Maybole-orientated website, richpetit.com, 1 which has an extended McWhirter family tree,
but does not make the direct connection with the twins.
The twins’ great great great grandfather was a William McWhirter, who was born in
1723 in Minnigaff, Kirkcudbrightshire. He married, about 1763, a Jean Gibson. No date of
death has been found for either of them.
His son, also William, was born in Maybole on the 1st July 1773. He worked as a
weaver, and later as a carter. He married (before 1799) Agnes Newall, from the
Kirkcudbrightshire parish of Kells: she was born in 1774, and was dead by 1821. This
William was alive in 1851, but had died by 1863.
This William had a son, Anthony, born in 1812. He is the twins’ great grandfather.
He was a tanner to trade, but also appears to have served some years as a police constable.
Although born in Maybole, he passed most of his adult life in Ayr. He was married twice,
firstly in 1833, and secondly, in October 1850, to Jane McDowall. He had six children by
his first marriage, and one son by the second marriage, and it is through this son that this
lineage descends. Anthony McWhirter died, on the 9th August 1863, at 3½ Sandgate, Ayr.
The twins’ grandfather was William McWhirter. He was born on 27th May 1851 in
Mill Street, Ayr. He became an electrical engineer. In 1881 he was living in Barrow in
Furness, Lancashire, and his occupation is given in the Census for that year as “telegraph
linesman apparatus maker”. By 1885 he had returned to Scotland, and was living in Govan.
He, too, was married twice, firstly in 1872, and secondly in 1885. Again, too, descent is
through the second marriage. His second wife, who he married at Horsecleugh Farm,
Cumnock, was Margaret Kennedy Simpson. She died in 1916, and William McWhirter
died, on 6th March 1933, at his home, “Longhurst”, in Clarkston.
The twins’ father was William Allan McWhirter. He was born in Govan on 14th
September 1888. He had a lengthy career in journalism and newspaper publishing. From
1919 until 1925 he was a director of the Daily Record, and in the latter year (the year of the
twins’ birth) 2 he moved to London, as a managing director of the Sunday Pictorial and the
Daily Mirror. During these years he was, at various times, editor of the Sunday Mail, the
Weekly Record and the Sunday Pictorial, and was also editor-in-chief of the Daily Mail, and
the Sunday Despatch. In 1936 he was the President of the London Ayrshire Society. 3 He
died on the 16th May 1955 at his home, “Aberfoyle” at Winchmore Hill in North London.
As a newspaperman, W A McWhirter was aware of the importance of facts, and accurate
21
facts. This was a discipline which he instilled in his sons, and which led ultimately to the
Guinness Book of Records.
Rob Close
1
2
3
Seen 30th July 2004.
His wife (the twins’ mother) was Margaret Williamson, from Giffnock, whom he
married in 1922.
Ayrshire Post, 20th May 1955, 18e. This obituary of W A McWhirter fleshes out some
of the detail found in the sources cited in the introduction.
Ayrshire Federation of Historical Societies
New Secretary
After months (years) of pleading, my prayers have been answered, and the
Federation now has a new Secretary. Her name is Pamela McIntyre, and she can be
contacted at 5 Eglinton Terrace, AYR KA7 1JJ.
Pamela is an archivist, and worked for 7 years in the archives at Heriot-Watt
University. For the past 12 months she has been working, part time, at the Ayrshire
Archives Centre in Ayr.
We welcome Pamela to the team, and look forward to the Federation benefiting
from her enthusiasm and interest in community history.
Rob Close continues as Treasurer, and Editor of Ayrshire Notes. He might now be
able to devote more time to the Ayrshire Records Series.
Troon Conference 2004
The biannual Conference is nearly upon us, and we look forward to seeing many of
you there. The date is Saturday, 30th October 2004. The theme is Medical History, and the
speakers are:
James Beaton, The History of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons
of Glasgow
Helen Dingwall, Medicine and Surgery in Early Modern Scotland
Brian Moffat, Recent Discoveries at Soutra Medieval Hospital
Rab Houston, How to Cure the Mentally Ill in 18th Century Scotland
The day will begin at 10 a.m, and close at around 4 p.m. As is usual, there will be a
lunch break, when delegates can make their own arrangements.
The cost of the day is a remarkably good value £10. Cheques, &c., payable to
AFHS, should be sent to Rob Close, at 1 Craigbrae Cottages, Drongan, AYR KA6 7EN.
22
Swap Shop, 2004
The Swap Shop for 2004 will be held on Sunday, 14th November 2004, beginning at
2 p.m. The venue is the Smith and Archibald Lace Mill, West Donington Street, Darvel,
where we shall be the guests of Smith & Archibald (Darvel) Ltd.
This is one of the last traditional lace mills still working in the Irvine Valley, and we
shall have an opportunity to see the mill, as well as engage in the usual AFHS round table
discussion.
Society Secretaries and individual members of the Federation will be mailed
separately about this shortly.
We hope for a good turn out both at the Troon Conference, and at the Swap Shop.
Diary of Meetings September 2004 to May 2005
AANHS
Ayrshire Archaeological and Natural History Society. Meetings in Carnegie
Library, Ayr, at 7.45 p.m.
ASA
Alloway & Southern Ayrshire Family History Society. Meetings in Doonfoot
Primary School, Abbots Way, Doonfoot, at 7.30 p.m.
BHS
Beith Historical Society. 7.30 p.m.
EAFHS
East Ayrshire Family History Society. Meetings in Gateway Centre, Foregate
Square, Kilmarnock, at 7.30 p.m.
KCCS
Kyle and Carrick Civic Society. Meetings in Loudoun Hall, Ayr, at 7.30 p.m.
KDHG
Kilmarnock & District History Group. Meetings in Kilmarnock College at 7.30
p.m.
LDHS
Largs and District Historical Society. Meetings in Largs Museum at 7.30 p.m.
L(MS)
LDHS, Marine Section. Meetings in Largs Museum at 7.30 p.m.
LNAFHS Largs & North Ayrshire Family History Society. Meetings in Largs Library at
7.30 p.m.
MHS
Maybole Historical Society. Meetings in Maybole Castle at 7.30 p.m.
PHG
Prestwick History Group. Meetings in 65 Club, Main Street, Prestwick, at 7.30
p.m.
SHS
Stewarton Historical Society. Meetings in John Knox Church Hall, Stewarton,
at 7.30 p.m.
TAFHS
Troon @ Ayrshire Family History Society. Meetings in Portland Church Hall,
South Beach, Troon, at 7.30 p.m.
WKAS
West Kilbride Amenity Society. Meetings in Community Centre, Corse Street,
West Kilbride, at 7.30 p.m.
23
September 2004
Mon 6
MHS
Thu 9
EAFHS
Tue 14
LNAFHS
Tue 21
TAFHS
October 2004
Mon 4
KCCS
Mon 4
L(MS)
Mon 4
MHS
Tue 5
KDHG
David Hunter
Members Night
David Rowand
John Roxburgh
Our Carrick VCs
Dan Coughlan
Craig Osborne
Tom Barclay
Patrick Parsons
The Paisley Shawl
Scott’s of Bowling
Covenanters in the Carolinas
The Tinker, The Priest and
Flodden Field
Christmas Customs
Coffee morning in Dunn
Memorial Hall
Ayrshire Archives
The Natural History of the Clyde
Islands
North Ayrshire
A Kirk in Ruins – Loudoun Kirk
History of Glasgow Police 1800
- 1975
Local Material and Holdings of
the RCAHMS
Museum of Flight, East Fortune
Thu 7
Sat 9
BHS
LNAFHS
Valerie Reilly
Thu 14
Thu 14
EAFHS
AANHS
Thu 14
Tue 19
Tue 19
PHG
KDHG
LDHS/LNAFHS
Tue 26
WKAS
Thu 28
AANHS
tba
Ralph
Kirkwoood
Jim Allan
Susan Smith
Alastair
Dinsmor
Siobhan
McConnachie
Malcolm
MacCallum
John Millar
Thu 28
BHS
November 2004
Mon 1
L(MS)
Mon 1
KCCS
Mon 1
MHS
Alastair
McFarlane
Michael
Donnelly
Marion Stewart
Tue 2
Thu 4
Tue 9
Thu 11
KDHG
PHG
LNAFHS
AANHS
Robin Blair
Tom Macfarlane
Desmond Rowe
Alison Sheridan
Thu 11
EAFHS
Lorna Cawood
24
Scottish Legal Records
Cemetery problems
Lithuanian Adventure
Associated British Ports
Scottish Stained Glass
Dumfries and Galloway
Archives
Heraldry in Scotland
The History of Western SMT
William Shakespeare – The Man
Who Were Scotland’s First
Farmers?
Culzean Estates – the Kennedy
Family and Estate Records
Tue 16
KDHG
Richard Oram
Tue 16
TAFHS
John McGill
Thu 25
Thu 25
LDHS
AANHS
William Gibb
Eddie Haggarty
Tue 30
Tue 30
WKAS
KDHG
Charles Milligan
Dauvit Brown
December 2004
Thu 2
PHG
Jim Irving
Mon 6
KCCS
David
Wilbraham
Mon 6
Thu 9
L(MS)
AANHS
Tue 14
TAFHS
Tue 14
KDHG
Charles
Magorian
Jenni Calder
Wed 15
LDHS
Open Night
Neil Dickson
January 2005
Mon 10
L(MS)
Mon 10
KCCS
Bill Mann
David Hopes
Tue 11
KDHG
Neil Dickson
Tue 11
LNAFHS
Thu 13
Thu 13
EAFHS
AANHS
Elizabeth
Carmichael
Andrew Dick
Sean O’Reilly
Tue 18
TAFHS
Ian Kennedy
Thu 20
Tue 25
LDHS
KDHG
Elinor Simey
Kevin
Wilbraham
Commerce Meets the Cloister –
Melrose Abbey’s Ayrshire
Estates
In Pursuit of Sir William
Wallace
Kelso Land
Strathclyde Seen from the Police
Helicopter
Access and You
The Founding of Scotland c.850
to c.1250
South Africa – The Rainbow
Nation
Scottish Environmental
Protection Agency
Members’ Night
Brethren in Ayrshire: A Sect in
Society
Auld Scots Lead
Scots in Canada: A New World
Across the Waters
“Come Talk About Largs” We
will attempt to answer your
questions
All in a Day’s Work
The Distributed National Burns
Collection
Brethren in Ayrshire: A Sect in
Society
Digital Ancestry
Covenanters of Ayrshire
Keeping Good Biggins – The
AHSS and Conservation in
Scotland
1855 – The Introduction of
Official Registration
The Clarsach
The Relief of Poverty in
Ayrshire, 1560 to 1845
25
Tue 25
WKAS
Russel Coleman
Thu 27
AANHS
Thu 27
BHS
Christopher
Lowe
Andrew
McCallum
February 2005
Thu 3
PHG
Mon 7
KCCS
Mon 7
L(MS)
Mon 7
MHS
Tue 8
KDHG
tba
Gill Smart
Nick Kamenos
John Steele
Geoff Bailey
Tue 8
LNAFHS
Thu 10
AANHS
Thu 10
EAFHS
Tue 15
TAFHS
Charles
Magorian
Pete Wadley
Tue 22
Tue 22
WKAS
KDHG
Rob Close
John Steele
Thu 24
AANHS
Zoë Smolka
Thu 24
BHS
Elaine
McFarland
Thu 24
LDHS
Edwina
Proudfoot
March 2005
Thu 3
Mon 7
Mon 7
Tue 8
PGH
L(MS)
KCCS
KDHG
Tue 8
LNAFHS
Thu 10
Thu 10
EAFHS
AANHS
26
Roderick
Grahame
James Dickson
Peter Livingston
Doreen Grove
Olive Geddes
Christopher
Fleet
Ian Johnson
Ian Campbell
Archaeology of the Three Towns
Bypass
Recent Excavations on
Inchmarnock
Anzio Beachhead
Scottish Wildlife Trust
Global Warming
The HMS Dasher Disaster
Recent Discoveries on the
Antonine Wall
tba
Ancient Glacier Bodies: Oetzi
and Kwaday Dan Ts’inchi
A look at the Scottish Dialect
Family Records in the Naional
Archives
Architecture of West Kilbride
The Dark Secrets of HMS
Dasher
Red Squirrel Conservation in
South Scotland
Death Mourning and
Commemoration in 19th C
Scotland
Scottish Church Heritage
Research
Pot Pourri
Cumbrae Rocks
Defence of Britain Project
Wish You Were Here!
Travellers’ Tales from Scotland,
1890 to 1920
Mapping Out Your Family
History
Lifeboats of Ayrshire
Men Must, However, Eat
Tue 22
KDHG
Donald Reid
Thu 24
Tue 29
LDHS
WKAS
John Hume
Peter Hinde
L(MS)
PHG
LNAFHS
EAFHS
TAFHS
BHS
Duncan Winning
tba
tba
Dane Love
Tom Graham
Jim Grant
PHG
LNAFHS
AGM
April 2005
Mon 4
Thu 7
Tue 12
Thu 14
Tue 19
Thu 28
May 2005
Thu 5
Tue 10
Dr Henry Faulds of Beith –
Pioneer of Fingerprints
Ayrshire Churches
West Kilbride Initiative: An
Update
Kayaks in Greenland
tba
Walter Clearie and His Works
Transatlantic Liners
Blether of 2005
Historic Milestones
Recently South Ayrshire Council (Roads Policy Services) appealed for information
concerning the removal of a ‘Historic Milestone’ from the junction of the A77 and B7035
during roadworks. At this approximate location was the junction of two turnpikes: the ‘road
leading from Ayr by Mauchline, Sorn and Muirkirk towards Douglas, so far as that road is
within the said county of Ayr’ [Ayr Roads Act 1767]; and the ‘road from Monkton through
the lands of Prestwick, by St Evox to Coylton, passing through the parishes of Monkton, St
Evox, and Coylton’ [Ayr Roads Act 1805].
There are many more milestones (including mileposts and direction stones) in
Ayrshire than one might suppose from a perusal of the OS Landranger maps of the county.
These maps show only the milestones and mileposts on our A and B roads. They omit the
many to be found on roads which, though minor now, were part of the turnpike system.
They also omit a number of stones which indicated direction only, which may be why the
missing St. Evox stone was not on OS Landranger sheet 70.
I have observed other disappearances over the past fifteen years. This, together with
the ease of publishing on the Web, has inspired me to set up an Illustrated Catalogue of
Ayrshire Milestones. This can be found at: www.ayrshirehistory.org.uk/milestones or by
going to www.ayrshirehistory.org.uk and clicking the ‘milestones’ button. Apart from
providing a pictorial record of all the extant stones, this will set them in the context of the
turnpikes, so that the overall pattern of the remaining stones and the significance of each
individual stone can be appreciated. I hope that this catalogue will inspire others to take an
interest in the preservation of our historic milestones.
David McClure
27
AANHS Publications
available from Ronald W. Brash MA, Publications Distribution Manager
10 Robsland Avenue, Ayr KA7 2RW
Further information about the AANHS (Ayrshire Archaeological & Natural History Society)
and its publications will be found on the society’s website: www.aanhs.org.uk
A Scottish Renaissance Household (MacKenzie)
£3.00
Plant Life in Ayrshire (Kirkwood/Foulds)
£4.20
The Barony of Alloway (Hendry)
£3.60
Robert Adam in Ayrshire (Sanderson)
£3.60
The Cumnock Pottery (Quail)
£5.00
Tolls and Tacksmen (McClure)
£3.60
Smuggling and the Ayrshire Economic Boom (Cullen)
£4.00
The Port of Ayr 1727–1780 (Graham)
£4.20
John Smith of Dalry, Part 1: Geology (ed. Reid)
£6.00
John Smith of Dalry, Part 2: Archæology & Natural History (ed. Reid)
£7.20
Mauchline Memories of Robert Burns (ed. Strawhorn) (reprint)
£3.50
Antiquities of Ayrshire (Grose, ed. Strawhorn) (reprint)
£4.20
Cessnock: An Ayrshire Estate in the Age of Improvement (Mair)
£4.50
Robert Reid Cunninghame of Seabank House (Graham)
£3.60
Historic Ayr: A Guide for Visitors
£2.00
A Community Rent Asunder:
The Newmilns Laceweavers Strike of 1897 (Mair)
£3.50
The Rise and Fall of Mining Communities in Central Ayrshire (Wark)
£3.00
The Last Miller: The Cornmills of Ayrshire (Wilson)
£6.00
Historic Alloway, Village and Countryside: A Guide for Visitors
£2.00
The Street Names of Ayr (Close) 128 pages
£5.00
Servants in Ayrshire 1750–1914 (Aitchison) 144 pages
£5.00
Ayrshire in the Age of Improvement (McClure) 192 pages
£6.00
Historic Prestwick and its surroundings, 64 pages
£2.50
Vernacular Building in Ayrshire (Hume), 80 pages
£4.50
Armstrong’s Maps of Ayrshire (1775: reprint, 6 sheets)
28
£12.00

Ayrshire Notes template 3 Sep 03

Transcription

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